At the beginning of many of her workshop training sessions, Satir delivered a meditation. She believed that meditation tapped into the deepest part of ourselves and gave us easy access to our resources.
When we experience fear or anger, we release adrenaline, also known as epinephrine. One way to remain calm is to decrease the production of adrenaline. Research is now showing that meditation releases GABA, which is an adrenaline inhibitor (Siegel, 2007). In other words, biological research validates what Satir taught: how a calm, peaceful, loving, deeply relaxed state of meditation slows down reactions of anger or fear. What a loving way to approach our selves and the world!
I invite you to pull up two chairs, and read this aloud to a friend. Then switch. Or tape-record yourself so that you can listen to these heart-felt words more than once.
We open with a line from “Intimate Body Connection”, move into “Changing Through Acceptance” and interweave “We Are In Charge of Ourselves” (Satir, 2003). As you read, allow yourself to pause and breathe.
Satir placed much emphasis on connection with one’s own self-essence. And so, I have chosen to blend three of her meditations that will relax you, deepen the experience of mind-body connection and then take you forward into possibilities of being in charge of your self.
Enjoy!
Now . . . as you close your beautiful eyes, . . . let yourself come in touch with the wonder that all you had to do was to think, to send a thought to your eyelids, and they closed. . . . Could you imagine that you could be in that kind of intimate connection with all the rest of your body? Not only to send messages to it, but in return to hear the various parts of your body talk to you? . . . At this moment ask your eyelids how they feel in the position that they are in, and listen for an answer. And then let yourself come in touch with your breathing – and behold another miracle. . . . Effortlessly you take the air in and all the wonderful parts of your body act immediately to take out of that breath what your body needs. . . . You don’t have to do anything about it at all. . . . Just allow your breath to come in and then support it, and cheer it on as it goes through your total body. The process of extracting the ingredients for your growth will be done by your body without your help and without your guidance. . . . You just have to allow for the air to come in. Just be in touch, at this moment, with the feeling of allowing your breath to come into your body – . . . breathing. . . . And as you are in touch with the feeling of the breathing, expand your awareness to see if there are tight places in your body that require attention. . . . And if you find any, thank them for letting you know there is tightness, . . . and relax so that the tension and energy leave on an outgoing breath. . . And now let yourself go deep inside and give yourself a message of appreciation for you. Very gently, with your eyes closed, start moving parts of your body. Just move them gently. Again, let yourself be in touch with your body and its comfort – your neck, your back. . . . Gentle movement. . . . Lifting a shoulder a little, let your toes move in your shoes or wherever they are – little movements – and see what happens. . . . And very gently now, move your body slightly as you would like to have it move, giving yourself a message of appreciation for you. . . . See what the words feel like inside: “I love me, . . . I value me”, . . . and know that what you are talking about is the essence of you. . . . Recognize that, as you give yourself more love, you then have more strength and courage to deal with those behaviours that you would like to change, . . and you begin to neutralize the old messages of rejection or potential rejection. . . . Give yourself permission to remember this. We are in charge. . . . We are in charge of how and when and in what way we take in our breath. . . . We are in charge of how we see ourselves and how we are with ourselves. . . . What we aren’t in charge of is whether it rains, . . . whether it snows, . . . whether somebody yells at us, . . . whether somebody criticizes, . . . or whether somebody loves us. . . . We really are not in charge of that, only of how we respond. When our bodies and our hearts and our minds are in harmony, we send out positive energy within our sphere. . . . To that degree we influence what’s happening by our own harmonious energy. It’s been shown that crimes are usually not committed in sight of people when it’s light. When it’s dark, more negative things happen. . . . And the darkness is like looking at negativity. . . . So become aware that we are automatically a light in any darkness when we are harmonious with what we think, what we feel, how we are, and how we love ourselves. . . . And that light grows ever brighter when we know, absolutely, crystal clearly, that we are manifestations of life, . . . and that we are pure in essence. Again, be in touch with your breathing . . . and become aware that today is another day. . . . It is built upon yesterday, and yet it will not be the same as yesterday. Those things which were started yesterday, which wait to blossom until today, can use this day for development. . . . And this day can also be a time when we introduce new things, because life is always pregnant with growth – always . . . . . . Allow yourself to breathe in these truths. . . take your time, and when you are ready, open your eyes and come back to the room.
References: Satir, V. (2003). In J. Banmen (Ed.), Meditations of Virginia Satir: Peace Within, Peace Between, Peace Among. Washington: Avanta Siegel, D.J. (2007). The Mindful Brain: Reflection and Attunement in the Cultivation of Well-Being. New York: Norton.
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